Rose's Heavenly Cakes (80 page)

General Mills, in studies performed more than forty years ago, recommended increasing flour by 2.5 percent at 3,500 feet/1,067 meters and gradually increasing to 10 percent at 8,000 feet/2,438 meters.

Sponge-type cakes are affected by high altitude in much the same way as butter cakes. For a sponge-type cake that does not contain baking powder, it is advisable to decrease the sugar. This helps to speed coagulation of the egg proteins that stabilize or set the cake and interferes less with gelatinization of the starch. You can also add a little more flour to strengthen the structure. At over 3,500 feet/1,067 meters, the oven temperature should be increased to 375°F/190°C.

Ingredients and Basic Recipes

The supreme magic of cake baking is the metamorphosis of relatively ordinary ingredients into exquisitely textured and flavorful visions of delight. A well-crafted recipe is essential, following the instructions advisable, but the quality of the ingredients makes the difference between good and sublime.

This section has two purposes. The first is to introduce you to my favorite ingredients and guide you to their availability. The second is to share the information I have acquired through the years of researching and working with these ingredients for a better understanding of my choices and also to enable you to experiment on your own should you so choose. There are a few products because of their incomparable quality and they are available only through food service distributors. However, most of them can be purchased in reasonably small quantities for home use.

For all ingredients in this book, weights are given in both the metric and avoirdupois (ounces/pounds) systems. Grams generally have been rounded off to the nearest whole number without decimal points, the ounces to the nearest decimal point. Either system works, but do not expect the mathematics to correlate exactly. I prefer weighing to measuring for its superior speed and precision, but if you choose measuring, it's important to have the right technique.

There is no doubt about it: Weighing is faster, easier, and neater than measuring. But measuring by volume is fine as long as you do it carefully and accurately. The way I have presented the volume measures is the way in which I would measure them. Instead of writing 6 tablespoons sugar, I express it as ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons because that is the more convenient approach. Also, the fewer measures used, the less room for error. Occasionally, for small amounts of dry ingredients such as baking powder or baking soda, I will call for 3 teaspoons instead of 1 tablespoon because of the inaccuracy of most measuring spoons. But for sticky ingredients, I prefer giving the largest measuring spoon required because some of the ingredient always remains in the spoon, throwing off the final quantity if several spoonfuls are required.

For those who measure instead of weigh, the "dip and sweep" method of measuring refers to dipping the measuring cup into a bin containing an ingredient such as flour and sweeping off the excess on the top with a long flat metal spatula or knife. Flours should be stirred lightly before measuring, except for Wondra flour, which doesn't tend to settle.

"Lightly spooned into the cup" refers to spooning the ingredient into a cup and then sweeping off the excess with a long flat metal spatula or knife. This method yields less of the ingredient than the dip-and-sweep method.

"Sifted" means that the flour is pushed through either a sifter or strainer into a cup that is sitting on a counter or other flat surface. The cup is never touched or (perish the thought) shaken. Only the handle is held when the excess is swept off with a spatula or knife. Sifting yields the least amount of flour. (Incidentally, "dusted" means to sprinkle lightly.)

All dry ingredients should be measured in a cup designed for solids. Liquid ingredients, including golden and corn syrups, should be measured in a liquid measure with a spout. There is a difference in volume between liquid and solid measuring cups (see
Liquid Measures
and
Solid Measuring Cups
).

What follows is a list of my most-used ingredients in order of their importance.

Flour

Flour is the single most important ingredient in cake baking. The type of flour used, particularly its protein content and whether it is bleached or unbleached, is critical to the outcome. There are essentially three types of flour I use in this book. The two that I use most often are bleached cake flour and bleached all-purpose flour. Bleaching is critical for cakes made with unmelted butter because it roughens the surface of the flour grains, helping them to keep the butter in suspension and improving gelatinization. If unbleached flour is used, the cakes will dip in the center soon after removal from the oven and some of the butter will have settled on the bottom of the cake, resulting in an unpleasant flavor and texture. (For alternatives to bleaching, see
"Kate Flour"
.)

Cake and bleached all-purpose flour can be used interchangeably for most of the recipes as long as the weight is the same. If you are measuring by volume, refer to
Some Useful Substitutions for Emergencies
. Cake flour results in a more tender crumb, but if you desire extra tenderness and you have only bleached all-purpose flour, you will need to use the suggested amount of cornstarch in place of some of the all-purpose flour. In some instances, such as with the
Golden Lemon Almond Cake
, I like the higher protein of the all-purpose flour so that the cake has enough structure and slices without falling apart.

If you are using a national brand of bleached all-purpose flour, the volume will be less than that of cake flour because it has a higher protein and is heavier so you need less of it. If, however, you are using regional brands, especially from the South, such as White Lily, the protein will be very similar to cake flour and you can use the same volume.

The third flour I use for many of the sponge cakes is Wondra flour, created by General Mills Gold Medal. It is produced by a patented process called agglomeration, which enables the flour particles to dissolve instantly in liquid, yielding a tender crumb. I decided one day to try it for angel food cake, thinking that it would blend more easily into the beaten whites, deflating them less. While this worked perfectly, to my astonishment the cake was also amazingly tender. So I went on to try it in every possible cake.

I wasn't happy with the texture it gave to butter layer-type cakes, but almost across the board it turned out to be the ideal flour for sponge cakes such as génoise and biscuit (other than chocolate ones, which acquired a less desirable flavor). The slight decrease of 1/8 to ¼ inch in height of sponge cakes baked in 9 by 2-inch cake pans was more than compensated for by the exquisite tenderness, airiness of texture, and superior flavor. The flavor improvement was so substantial that when my husband, Elliott, was subjected to a blind taste test, he didn't even want to finish eating the cake I created with cake flour.

Cakes made with Wondra and baked in sheet pans lose about one-eighth inch in height, so I have stayed with cake flour or a combination of cake flour and cornstarch, especially where the cake will be rolled, as it gives the rolled cake a much more attractive appearance. If you plan to replace cake flour or all-purpose with Wondra, the substitution is equal with weight. For volume, see
Ingredient Equivalencies and Substitutions
.

Measure Wondra flour either by sprinkling it directly out of the canister (which is a bit slow) or spooning it lightly into the measuring cup and leveling it off. The weight is the same with both methods.

Store flour tightly covered and away from heat so that it doesn't absorb moisture or dry out. Well-stored bleached flour will keep for several years. Unbleached flour has a one-year shelf life at room temperature and several years if frozen.

"Kate Flour"

This is special information created for home bakers who do not have access to bleached flour. Kate Coldrick (
www.amerrierworld.wordpress.com
), who lives in the United Kingdom, has done research and discovered that some flour companies in the United Kingdom produce a heat-treated flour available only to the food service industry. Determined to have access to this flour for the home baker, after extensive experiments she has come up with a technique using a microwave for treating commonly available flour so that it performs as successfully in cakes as bleached flour. Home bakers around the world are now able to make cakes from this and other American cookbooks without needing American bleached flour. We are all indebted to Kate for her perseverance. Following is an explanation of the process.

Bleaching flour is a chemical process that accelerates the natural processes of aging. The oxidation of carotenoid pigments in the flour, which turns the flour from ivory to white, is one of the effects. More significant, however, is that the resulting alteration of the protein molecules effectively denatures their gluten-forming capability and, together with changes to the surface of the starch granules, promotes gelatinization of the starch during baking. This is important because the ability of the flour to gelatinize is critical to the ultimate texture of the cake.

The effects of aging on flour can also be accelerated by physical rather than chemical means. Since chemical reactions are affected by temperature, an alternative treatment to bleaching is controlled heating of the flour.

A heat-treated flour can then be used as a viable substitute for chlorinated flour. A simple form of heat treatment can be achieved at home by using a microwave. The aim is to heat the flour until it reaches a temperature that is high enough to affect the protein, starch, and subsequent gelatinization potential of the flour sufficiently. Kate has found that the best results are obtained when the flour is heated to 130°C/266°F, stirring every 10 seconds to prevent burning. This heat-treated or "Kate Flour" can be used in recipes that call for bleached all-purpose flour, or it can be mixed with corn flour/cornstarch at a ratio of seven to one to lower the overall protein content of the flour to that of cake flour.

You will need to experiment with the flours available to you. As a general guideline for making cake flour, try to find a finely milled flour with a low amount of protein per one hundred grams. However, a higher protein flour milled predominantly from soft wheats is preferable to a lower-protein flour milled from a mixture of hard and soft wheats. Similarly, a higher-protein flour that is finely milled tends to give better results than a lower-protein but more coarsely milled flour. A paler, whiter flour is also likely to be preferable to one that is darker because light coloring signifies the lower ash content typical of soft flours. Kate has achieved the best results with Italian 00 grade flour, a flour that is finely milled from soft wheats.

The following simple procedure can be used to metamorphose unbleached flour into Kate Flour:

• Weigh out 280 grams/10 ounces of the flour called for and place it on a microwavable plate (the flour gets very hot, so for safety's sake it is best not to attempt to microwave more flour than this at one time).

• Spread out the flour on the plate to have a bed of 18 to 20 millimeters/¾ inch deep.

• Microwave the flour on high power for about 10 minutes, making sure to stir every 10 seconds to equalize the temperature and prevent browning. After the first 3 minutes check the temperature with an instant-read thermometer. Break up any lumps with a fork and continue microwaving and stirring every 10 seconds, until the thermometer registers at least 130°C/266°F. (It is difficult to predict the overall microwaving times as these vary greatly depending on the power of your microwave and the type of flour you are using. However, Kate found that flours needed to be treated for between 10 and 13 minutes on average when using a microwave power of 750 to 800 watts.)

• Allow the flour to cool to room temperature. Sift it and discard any residue.

If desired, for a slightly higher rise and softer texture, add ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum and whisk it in to incorporate it evenly.

If you live in a dry environment, to restore moisture removed during the heat treatment, return the flour to the microwave, or place it in an enclosed container, and set a 1-quart bowl of hot water next to it. Let it sit for 5 minutes, change the water, and let it sit for another 5 minutes. Store the flour in an airtight container.

Make more batches as needed. This flour can be used in recipes calling for bleached all-purpose flour (averaging 11 percent protein).

To lower the protein content of the flour in order to use it as cake flour (assuming you are using flour with a 9 percent or higher protein content), substitute 2 tablespoons per cup of this flour with 2 tablespoons of corn flour/cornstarch. The most accurate way to do this is by weight. Remove one-eighth of this weight and replace it with an equal weight of corn flour/cornstarch. Place both parts of the Kate Flour in a large bowl and whisk to combine thoroughly.